Echo
by theDoctorlies
Summary: The thoughts in Naruto’s head aren’t exactly what he wanted to think when he ran into Sasuke again two and a half years later. One-sided NaruSasu! COMPLETE


Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. The song "Echo" belongs to Trapt.

Summary: The thoughts in Naruto's head aren't exactly what he wanted to think when he ran into Sasuke again two and a half years later. One-sided NaruSasu

A/N: So, I love this song. When I listened to it a couple of days ago, my mind went straight to Naruto. I think that action speaks for itself. Woot. Anywho, this crazy authoress will leave you with only one word…Moo. Heh.

P.S. These lyrics are a reflection of Naruto's thoughts. Ja!

:May Contain Spoilers For Shippuden:

* * *

This was it. They'd finally found Orochimaru's hide out and hopefully Sasuke was somewhere inside. Naruto felt excitement bubbling in his chest at the aspect of seeing his once best friend again after so many years apart. To Naruto, it felt like he hadn't seen the stuck-up Ice Prince in over thirty years, but really it was only two and a half years. This time…This time, he was going to bring Sasuke back, even if it killed him. He had to; there was no other way. He'd promised Sakura a long time ago that he'd bring Sasuke back.

Running through the musty, dark corridors of the hide out, Naruto heard an explosion further down. Chucks of wall and debris scattered in front of them, and the smell of smoke invaded his nostrils. This was it. Sasuke was so close; he could feel it in his very core.

_**Close my eyes**_

_**Let the whole thing pass me by**_

_**There is no time to waste asking why**_

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

Sakura broke through the haze first, coming to a large clearing that could've been a room on a better day. Her green eyes surveyed the damage, sweeping over a barely conscious Sai sitting slumped against the wall. She swept her gaze up to a shadowed figure standing atop the rubble and her eyes widened.

Naruto came skidding to a halt and his azure eyes zeroed in on the same shadowed figure Sakura was mesmerized by. It was Sasuke, dressed in a white shirt, the front parted to reveal smooth, milky skin. His pants were black, leading to the equally black sandals on his feet. A long, purple rope around his waist was holding up his black pants, and at his back was a long sword. His eyes were shaped differently, Naruto noted, even though he knew it was insignificant to everything else on his pale skinned best friend.

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

_**I need to let go, let go, let go, let go of this pride, yeah**_

_**Asking why**_

Sasuke swept his deep, black eyes over his old teammates, his eyes locking on azure and holding them. "Naruto, huh." The Uchiha murmured, and Naruto felt his entire being cry out, like Sasuke and he were the only two in the clearing. Those dark eyes were drawing him in, like a large black hole swallowing up space and time and everything in between.

Naruto felt his mouth moving on its own, felt Sasuke's name fall from his lips, soundless, but echoing in his head like he'd actually said it. It shook him to the core, locked in Sasuke's eyes, like their thoughts were intermingling in the space separating them.

"_Ne? Ne, Naruto? Did you know that when two great ninja come to blows with their fists, they can tell what's in the others heart? Can you tell what's in mine? Ne? Ne?!"_

_**I think about your face**_

_**And how I fall into your eyes**_

_**The outline that I trace**_

_**Around the one that I call mine**_

Sasuke jumped down from his spot on the debris, almost graceful and in slow motion. Their eyes remained locked until Sasuke moved to put an arm around the blonde's shoulder, his breath tickling his ex-teammate's ear, his warmth singing through his clothes. Naruto fixed his eyes on a pint somewhere in the distance, unable to breathe with Sasuke standing so close. Every time the blonde inhaled, Sasuke's scent was there, earthy and sweet. It sent a sweet tingling all through his body like electric bolts.

Sasuke's face was mere inches from his own, their cheeks brushing, the taller boy's breath making his ear feel hot. Naruto sucked in a breath, and blinked back the tears that so desperately wanted to fall. What was Sasuke doing, just standing there, and in a morbid way, holding him?

"If you have the time to come chase after me, shouldn't you be training to become Hokage?" Sasuke murmured, like he was taunting the blonde, like his decision to chase him was useless. There was more, too. Sasuke had said more, but the blood pounding in Naruto's head was deafening, and it drowned out everything else.

_**The time to count more space**_

_**And were you drew the line**_

_**I don't need to solve this case**_

_**And I don't need to look behind**_

Naruto brought a hand up and pressed it against Sasuke's elbow, muttering out a few, soft words meant only for Sasuke's ears. "Then why…? Is this your way of breaking bonds?" The blonde heard the click of the other boy's sword as he pulled it out of its sheath, and replied dispassionately: "It's not that I didn't break those bonds."

The blonde felt Sasuke shift, his left arm drawing back to raise his sword in the air. As if in slow motion, the sword came back down in an arc, pointed towards his back. _Move_, Naruto screamed inside his head, but the command never made it to his numbed body. He almost missed Sasuke's next words.

"I merely spared your life on a whim. So, this time, at my whim, you will lose your life." The sword came soaring towards his back, and he clenched his eyes shut, readying himself for the blow.

It never came.

_**Close my eyes**_

_**Let the whole thing pass me by**_

_**There is no time to waste asking why**_

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

Something warm was pressed against his back, and that warmth was breathing. Naruto twisted his head around-which was hard when Sasuke's cheek was still pressed against his-and his azure eyes caught on his dark haired teammate. Sai was pressed against his back, holding onto Sasuke's right wrist, stopping the sword from moving any further.

Naruto felt the warm wisps of breath against his ear as Sasuke spoke, complimenting Sai on his correct path of action. With him pressed against the blonde's back, Sasuke's sword would only pierce through the short haired ninja and not the Uchiha's actual target.

Azure eyes caught on the brown haired man sneaking up behind Sasuke with a kunai clutched tightly in his gloved hand. Naruto suddenly felt scared for the man.

"Chidori Nagashi!"

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

_**I need to let go, let go, let go, let go of this pride, yeah**_

_**Asking why**_

Sasuke had stopped the attack, but Yamato was intent on attacking Sasuke. The Uchiha spun around, thrusting his sword towards the Jounin, piercing metal and skin. Another Chidori Nagashi was sent through the sword and into the Jounin's chest.

The first thing he noticed was the blood. There were rivulets coming down from the wound in the man's chest, and Yamato crumpled to the ground like a broken doll. Sasuke's smirk was smug as onyx eyes swung over to Naruto; the blonde still stunned from his attack. The Uchiha palmed the blonde in his forehead, Sharingan spinning in his eyes. There was a flash of light, and then everything went dark.

Naruto was standing in front of Kyuubi, yelling that he didn't need the bastard fox's power. He caught a glimpse of black in his peripheral vision, and when he turned his head, Sasuke was there, standing next to him.

_**Do I expect to change**_

_**The past I hold inside**_

_**With all the words I say**_

_**Repeating over in my mind**_

The dark haired boy raised a hand to the large cage housing the Kyuubi, his eyes deep pools of swirling red.

"What are you doing here?!" Naruto yelled, his own voice bouncing off the walls of his mind and back again. Sasuke didn't answer him, didn't even look in his direction. The blonde clenched his teeth, ready to shout something particularly nasty, when the taller boy touched his head and Naruto felt his eyes roll into the back of his head. He felt a sort of sleepiness come over him, and suddenly, darkness descended.

_**Some thing's you can't erase**_

_**No matter how hard you try **_

_**An exit to escape**_

_**Is all there's left to find**_

When Naruto came to, he was lying sprawled on the ground, staring up at Sasuke and the snake bastard. The Uchiha was looking down at him with empty eyes, and for a moment, couldn't look away. They were gone the next second, and Naruto couldn't track their movements.

Sadness washed over him, trampling what little hope he'd had left. He pushed himself into a sitting position, tears burning the backs of his eyes. He let out a pained breath, willing the tears not to fall, but his body didn't seem to want to cooperate with his head.

_**Close my eyes**_

_**Let the whole thing pass me by**_

_**There is no time to waste asking why**_

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

Sakura sat back and watched as her teammate let out all of his frustration. After a while, the blonde boy had no tears left to cry, and he slowly stood up. Sakura latched onto his arm, and nuzzled her soft cheek against the sleeve of his jacket. Naruto let the pink haired girl lead him back the way they came, their footsteps echoing off the walls.

Naruto's thoughts were back in the clearing, still standing there with Sasuke, their cheeks brushing softly. In his thoughts, Sasuke hadn't said anything, but just stood there, his warmth comfortable on Naruto's shoulders. The Uchiha would be leaning into him, and instead of empty onyx, Sasuke's eyes would be lit up with amusement.

_Stop it, _Naruto chided himself.

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

_**I need to let go, let go, let go, let go of this pride**_

_**Until this echo, echo, echo, echo in my mind**_

_**Until this echo, echo, echo, echo can subside, yeah**_

Team Seven made it outside in one piece, into the dark night. Yamato had a hand over the wound in his chest, which had stopped bleeding only minutes after the dark haired missing nin had given it to him. He wondered if that Chidori Sasuke sent through him had actually cauterized it. If so, then what game was Sasuke playing at?

Naruto requested that they stop for the night, saying they all needed their rest. Yamato knew exactly where he was coming from. After chasing Sasuke for so long, and being close enough to taste victory, only to have it slip right through your fingers. He must've been exhausted.

_**I knew I always loved you**_

_**I knew I always loved you**_

_**I knew I always loved you…**_

They unrolled their sleeping mats, lit a small fire, and settled down for the night. Naruto couldn't find sleep, his thoughts going on a loop inside his head. He kept seeing Sasuke, unsheathing his sword and angling it towards his back.

_Stop thinking,_ Naruto told himself, clenching his eyes shut and balling his fists in his pant legs. What the hell was Sasuke _doing_? What the _hell_ did Sasuke think he was doing? Naruto thought the bastard had gotten over that. It looked like Sasuke was still intent on taking his life.

The sad part was, Naruto was still dead-set on bringing him back.

_**So I**_

_**Close my eyes**_

_**Let the whole thing pass me by**_

_**There is no time to waste asking why**_

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

Watching the tiny stars sparkle in the sky, Naruto went back to what he'd been thinking with Sasuke so close to him. In that moment, everything seemed to freeze, like it was just the two of them alone in that clearing. Were those thoughts really what he should've been thinking? He seriously considered leaving with Sasuke, just to be close to him.

Azure eyes closed slowly, making a silent wish and wondering if Sasuke was watching these same stars. Were they connected this way, then, brought closer by these sparkling specks?

He made a silent wish and prayed that Sasuke heard it, too, wherever he was.

_I wish you would come back._

_**I'll run away with you**_

_**By my side**_

_**I need to let go, let go, let go, let go of this pride**_

_**Until this echo, echo, echo, echo in my mind**_

_**Until this echo, echo, echo, echo can subside**_

_Owari_

* * *

A/N: So that's the end. I'm not sure how exact I am on this particular part in Shippuden, and I know I got some things wrong. I did add a little twist of my own, though, If you catch it right off, then good for you. Review and I'll give you a cookie.

P.S. If I got any of the lyrics wrong, I blame the Internet.


End file.
